A Year Of Renewable Power


As seen in the


August 23, 2007

By Conor Greene

READINGTON TWP. -- A 42,000-square-foot building in the township's industrial section has become the nation's first commercial facility to produce enough energy from renewable sources to meet all its needs for an entire year, according to its owners, Ferreira Construction. \

The building at 31 Tannery Road actually generated a surplus by generating more energy than it used over a 12- month period, allowing it to sell that leftover energy to other businesses. The project combined eight components that either produce energy or reduce the building's energy needs, including 1,276 rooftop solar panels, a highly efficient boiler system and a radiant-slab heating system.

Dru Crawley, commercial buildings team leader with the federal Department of Energy, says he isn't aware of any other commercial buildings that have achieved net-zero status over a full year.

The system's various components are tied together by a software program designed by Ed Brzezowski, a professional engineer with Ferriera. The patent-pending monitoring system integrates the systems and enables real-time remote tracking. Display monitors in the building show exactly how much energy the building, which houses office and equipment-repair bays, is using and producing at any given moment.
The company has now turned its sights toward helping other businesses and organizations both gain a full understanding of their energy use and integrate renewal components by forming a company called Live Data Systems. Any building owner seeking to reduce energy usage, even those not using renewable sources, could benefit from the software, said Alex Rivera, vice president of operations.

"We don't want to be the only net-zero commercial facility in the country," said Mr. Rivera. "Our underlying passion is to spread this net-zero electric efficiency to other facilities. In essence we can help any facility that is in need of improving its energy bills and efficiency."

"The software we invented allows us to monitor and ensure all systems are working property," he said. "You don't want a month to go by before realizing it's not working. The dynamic, live data enabled us to be proactive with our systems at all times, which I credit with making (the project) work."
After researching different renewable energy agencies and industry associations, Ferreira Construction has determined its facility to be the first American commercial building to achieve net-zero status for a full year, a milestone reached on July 12.

The U.S Department of Energy has set a goal that a renewable-energy building would be commercially viable by 2025, according to Mr. Rivera. With the 31 Tannery project and the subsequent launch of Live Data Systems, Ferriera Construction says they have already created a way for companies to reach net-zero with a payback period of just five to seven years.

"This is not the same as it was 10 years ago, when (energy) expense was not a big issue," said Mr. Rivera. "Schools and any large facilities are now having to face a very difficult expense when it comes to energy, and we want to help them better manage it. With our software, we are trying to help distribute readily-available tools to others do this thing.".

Mr. Rivera stresses that Live Data Systems can benefit businesses, schools or real estate managers, whether they are using renewable energy or not. "We offer ways to manage, diagnose and monitor both conventional energy and renewable," he said. "You just need to be in the market for lowering bills. Unfortunately, this is something we can't ignore anymore."
For details on Live Data Systems, check www.noveda.com.